Help and advice
Why do Parcelforce Worldwide charge customs clearance fees
If a parcel is received from outside the EU addressed to you, we will clear the goods through HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). You will required to repay all the relevant import duty, excise duty and VAT, (as determined by HMRC), together with our Customs clearance fee, details of which will be sent to you by letter. We charge a Customs clearance fee to help cover the cost of additional handling, administration, collection of monies and provision of facilities for Customs clearance of packages.
We have two levels of clearance fee for import parcels. There is a charge of £13.50 for express parcels imported with GLS or through the EMS channel from other Posts networks and also for high value standard parcels (valued at over £873). For all other import parcels, an £8 charge will apply. With effect from the 7th August 2017 the customs clearance fee charges for express and standard parcels are £11.25 for low value goods and £25 for high value goods (value over £873)
We will also make a charge if we have to hold your parcel whilst Customs process it, so we would recommend that you respond promptly to any Customs queries to avoid these charges. We will not levy a fee for the first 10 days, after 10 days however, storage fees will be charged. For more than 10 and up to 20 working days, - £5.50 per parcel. For each subsequent working day over 20 working days - £1.35 per parcel. All parcels valued at over £873 are placed in secure storage until completion of Customs formalities.
For more information about these fees, please contact our Customer Service Team on 03448 004466
Under the Union Customs Code (UCC) as of May 2016, goods, regardless of the declared value, entering the UK via post under Inward Processing (IP) must be declared using a Single Administrative Declaration (SAD/C88) customs entry. The company receiving the goods must hold an Inward Processing authorisation from HMRC. In order to facilitate the customs entry Parcelforce Worldwide employ a clearing agent. In this instance the importer will have a PFW Handling Fee charged for the customs entry.
Further details about importing Special Procedure goods via post can be found in Public Notice 3001 which is available on GOV.UK or alternatively, you can contact HMRC at the following address:
BT NCH
HM Revenue and Customs
BX9 1GZ
Details of any change can be found here.